Clutch.



Patnted-Jan. 17, 1911.

f INVENTGR @mm Swm@ B gQ/W M v ATTORNEY I F. S. ELLETT.

CLUTGH.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 27, 1910.

rREDERIoK s. LLETT, ornent-IRA, New YORK.

Appiication inea may 27, 191.0. seri-a1 No. 563,78215.v

Patented Jan., E?, 1911*..

et if' f 1 CLUTCH.

,6421 specmation of Letters raam.

e y T11-all 'eulwmui may. concern:

v Beit known. that I, FREDERICK Si. Ennsrr,

a.- eitizexr of the Unitedl States, residingqat Elinirmirr the county of Chemung and Stat-e of New York, have invented certain new.

and useful Improvements in Clutches,of which` the following is aspecieation.

rllhis invention relates to. improvements in-.-clutches for motor cycles, whereby the driving pulley is thrown into or out of engagemhnt with the engine shaft; my object being to provide a simple andA efecti-ve'clutch for this purpose which y may be actuated from the handle bar ofthe shaft; Fig. 2 a detail machineY to take up the throwing in the clutch.

I attain my objectby constructing the parte of the clutch and operating mechanism in the manner illustrated in the accompanyload gradually when l ing drawings in which- Figure l presents a sectional View of the clutch as attached to the end of the engine showing a portion of the clutch, sectioned on the line win Fig. l, the cap piece T being removed; and. Figs. 3; and 4f a plan view and side elevation, respectively, of the operating lever to. be attached; to one of the handles of the motor cycle.

Like numerals designate like parts inthe several views.

To the end of the engine shaft l, a hub 2 is rigidly fastened. Upon this hub the belt pulley 3. is mounted on the ball bearing 4. The pulley is chambered out at 5 to receive the multiple friction disks 6, and this chambered portion of the pulley is closed by a cap piece 7, which is fastened thereto by screws 8 after the clutch parts are assembled in the pulley chamber. T his cap piece rides on a -ball bearing 9 supported upon the adjustable cone l which is screw-threaded upon the outward end of the reduced portien, l1 of the hub Q. This outward end of the hub is chambered at 12 to receive the lock nut 13 at the end of-shaft 1, also to receive the setting-up mechanism of the clutch.

This setting-up mechanism consists of a screw 14 having doublethread of steep pitch, which passes through a nut l held stationary by means of an arm 16 fastened by means of an offset 17 to the engine casing orl other fixed support. The nut l5 is held in place upon the end of the hub by means of a cap piece v18 screwed into the outward end 'ofthe chamber 1 2 against the outerV 'erly adjusted, the two parts are securely.

more' particularly the clutch, the spring face of `the cone 10. The screw connection between this cap and the hub is left handed, so that whensaiotcap is screwed up against theJ cone ll0, after said cone has been prop- As the cap piece-18 rotatesshaft, while the nut ,15 is stationary, l provide aA ball; .bearing at 19 between it and the nut. An operating arm 65 20 is fastened to the outward-end. of screw 14, and the inward end of' this screw impinges against the disk 2l, which in turn presses against a disk Zprovidedwith arms 23, which .pass throughslots 2A provided therefor at the outward end-Lof thehub; 2.l The arms Q3 engage the greoves25 cut into the outward face of the disk 26,1 whichy isslidably mounted on the'- reduced portion 11- of the hubfQ, the periphery of this portion ,of the hub being made hexagonal, as shown- Iat- 27'. in F ig. 2, and the disk 26 being broaclled out hexagonally. to fit the hub s0 as to be ifo.- tated thereby. AlternateY friction disks 6 will also be fittedv to'this portion. of the hub,A while the intermediate disks will be coupled to the 'pulley shell by means of tongues 28- which project into grooves 29formed at suitable intervals around the Wall of the chamber 5, (see Fig.. The innermost friction ,disk engages a bearing surface 30 formed on the pulley at the inward end of the chamber 5.

locked in place. with the engine running 'of the clutch when set up, a ball 90 bearing disk 3l is inserted betweenthese two disks.

To operate the clutch 'I provide on thehandle bar of the motor cycle a lever 37 pivoted upon the end of an arm fastened, by means of a clamp 33, to the underside of the handle bar, in posit-ion to be Areadily manipulated by the thumb or finger where the hand of the rider grips the handle. This lever is connected' with vthearm 20 by a flexible steel rod 34, which is conducted from the handle bar to the clutch by means of suitable guides (not shown) attaehed to the .frame or other parts of the machine.` To hold the lever 37, ina locked position when the clutch is set, I provide a flat spring 35, which extends from the clamp 33 over' and beyond the lever. said spring being provided at 36 with an inclined catch over which the lever passes when .setting causing said catch to snap in back of the lever when the clutch is I To avoid frictionbetween disks 2l and 22, and toprovidevforthe free fully set. To release the clutch, the spring 'I upon the end of the hub extension, a cap 35 is pressed upward until the catch is freed from the lever. This relieves the tension on arm 20, and the pressure back of the screw 15 causes it to turn outward, by reason of the steep pitch of the threads. In setting the clutch, the lever 37 is gradually pulled backward over .the catch, thereby slowly taking up -the'friction and imparting motion from the driving shaft to the pulley.

While I have described this clutch as particularly adapted for motor cycles, l do not limit myself to such use.

'Vhat l claim as my invention and desire to secure by Letters Patent is-- l. The combination with a, rotary shaft, of a hub fastened upon one end thereof, a concentricwheel mounted for free movement upon said hub, one or more friction disks connected to the hub positioned in a chamber provided therefor between the hub and wheel and adapted to engage a friction member or members on the wheel, a fixed nut mounted concentrically at the outward end of the hub, a screw passing through said nut, means for imparting a turning movement to said screw, and means rotating with the hub and actuated by the 'screw whereby the inward i'novement. of4 the screw will be imparted to the friction disk or disks.

2. The combination with a rotary shaft, of a hub fastened upon one end thereof, a concentric wheel mounted for free movement uponsaid hub, lateral extensions on the hub and wheel forming an annular chamber between the two, one or more friction disks in said cliai'nber connected to the hub and adapted to engage a friction member or members on the wheel, :i disk slidably mounted in a central bore inthe outward end of the hub extension, arms projecting 4from said disk through longitudinal slotsl in the hub extension into engagement with the friction disk or disks, a fixed nut mounted concentrically at the outward end of the hub extension, a screw passing through said nut and adapted to press the armed disk inward, and means for turning the screw.

3. The combination with a rotary shaft, of a hub fastened upon oneV cud thereof, a concentric wheel mounted upon 'a ball bearingI upon said hul, lateral extensions on the hub and wheel forming an annular chamber between the two, a plurality of friction disks in said .chamber alternately connected to thc hub and wheel, the innermost disk adapted to engage a friction surface on the wheel, a cap piece fastened to the outward end of the wheel extension, a ball bearing in said cap piece, a cone for said l airing screwed piece screwed into a central bore in the hub extensionagainst said cone, a concentric nut mounted on a ball bearing in the outward end of Athe last named cap piece, means for holding` said nut stationary, a screw passing through the nut, a disk s'lidably mounted in.

the bore of the hub extension, a ball thrust bearing between said disk and the end of the screw. arms projecting from said disk 'through longitudinal slots in the -hub extension into engagement -with the outermost friction disk, and means for turningthe screw.

il. lhe combination with a rotary shaft, of a hub fastened upon one end thereof, a concentric wheel mounted for free rotation upon said hub, concentric clutch members mounted between the wheel and hub, and means concentrically mounted in the outwardend ofthe hub and independent of the rotations thereof for actuating the clutch members. L

5. IThe combination with a rotary shaft, of a hubr fastened upon one end thereof, a concentric wheel mounted for free rotation upon said hub, concentric clutch disks mounted in a chamber formed between the hub Aand disk, a, longitudinally movable member concentrically mounted in the outward end of the hub and independent of the rotation thereof, and means actuated by the inward movement of said member for actu-' ating the friction disks.

(5. 'lhe combination witha motor cycle, of a hub fastened upon the motor shaft, a concentric pulle i wheel mounted for free rotation upon said hub, clutch members between the hub and wheel, a screw mounted in a li,\:ed nut concentrically at the outward end of the hub, means actuated by said screw :for actuating 'the clutch members, and means for turning the screw operable by the ri der.

'l he combination with a motor cycle, of a hub fastened upon thc motor shaft, a concentric pulley wheel mounted for free rotation upon said hub, clutch members between thc hub and wheel, a screw mounted in'a lixed nut concentricallyat the outward end of the hub, 1n lans actuated by said screw for actuating the clutch members, an arm on the screw, and means on one ofthe handle bars of the machine for operatingsaid arm.

In testimony whereof Ihave affixed my signature,iin presence of two witnesses.

FREDERCK S. ELLETT.

lVitnesses RoswnLL R. Moss, lUcnNn DlvnN. 

